A new national survey reveals child mental health care is being increasingly spotlighted as a result of many American parent having been unable to secure necessary child mental health care for their children. Nearly 25% of parents who have children said at least one child who required child mental health had done so over a year ago didn’t receive it. There are multiple reasons for this: long wait times, cost, lack of available specialists close to them, or confusion about how to proceed with receiving care. Families, primarily those living in low-income households and rural communities, face significant obstacles to receiving child mental health care; they may feel like they are going through a maze that they can’t escape from with no known way to enter or have an end.
These statistics hide real-life compelling stories. After a lengthy period of noticing changes in their child (withdrawn behaviors, difficulty sleeping, sudden episodes of anger) a parent may finally summon the courage to ask for mental health care for their child; however, they may find that the earliest appointment available to them may be three to six months away, or that they are given only a list of phone numbers without any direction on how to proceed or contact any of the providers on the list. Many families may stop looking for assistance altogether. Experts are concerned that the gaps and barriers to child mental health are causing rates of anxiety, depression, and behavioral problems to escalate, which will lead to the time and cost for these children to recover being longer and more expensive in the future.
Policymakers and clinicians are advocating for multiple simultaneous solutions: an increase in services in schools, improvements in insurance coverage for children, and streamlined referral processes for pediatricians to connect families to pediatric mental health care rather than just providing them with a brochure. Telehealth has worked in some instances but not all families have privacy or access to devices and/or reliable internet service, so this is not always an ideal solution.
Advocates believe that children’s mental health care involves a range of services, not just therapy services alone. In addition to this, it will also involve parents learning how to begin to payoff early signs of mental health difficulties; teachers being trained to respond to children with emotional distress appropriately; and schools establishing safe places where they can discuss their experiences without fear of being judged or feeling ashamed.
The families surveyed indicated that their three main priorities for obtaining support were to have simple & accurate information, shorter wait times, and know that seeking support for a child’s mental illness would not invite stigma.
As youth continue to garner increased attention regarding their mental health and well-being, this report serves as a reminder that simply gaining understanding does not mean progress. If families are not able to find mental health services that are both affordable and accessible, many children needing services will still be left without the needed help due to lack of service availability.
Source: U.S. News – “U.S. Parents Report Gaps in Accessing Mental Health Care for Their Children”
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